USA v. Belgium Preview

The United States made it out of the Group of Death with a loss in their final game against Germany. Now onto the knockout round, nothing less than a win will do. The U.S. will take on Group H winners Belgium in the match to see who will advance to the quarterfinals to play the winner of Argentina and Switzerland.

Belgium won Group H after going undefeated, although they didn’t exactly coast to easy wins. When this group was announced, people had high hopes for Belgium, and few expected Algeria, Russia, and South Korea to challenge them. But Belgium needed to come from behind to beat Algeria 2-1, scored in the dying moments of the game to beat Russia 1-0, and beat South Korea 1-0 after going down to 10 men. Belgium has managed to grind out wins, which may bode well for their young team, as they’ve stayed composed and resilient in the latter stages of the match.

Just a few months ago, most people would’ve agreed that one of the strengths of this Belgium team was its strikers, Christian Benteke and Romelu Lukaku. The young duo have both excelled in the English Premier League over the past few seasons. But Benteke never even made it to the World Cup after tearing his ACL in an Aston Villa practice back in April. Lukaku, who has started each game for the Belgians, has yet to score, and hasn’t done much to inspire confidence. A strong performance from him will go a long way toward helping Belgium move past the U.S.

Eden Hazard

The strength of Belgium is in their midfield. Their best player, Eden Hazard, hasn’t had a great tournament, but has shown up when it mattered, creating the goal to beat Russia. He’s capable of moments of individual brilliance. They also have other creative talent out wide with young players Adnan Januzaj, Kevin de Bruyne, and Dries Mertens. Their midfield isn’t all flash, and they have players like Axel Witsel and Marouane Fellaini to provide strength in the middle of the field. Fellaini is especially important, as his form for Belgium doesn’t resemble his Manchester United form at all (He actually looks like he knows how to play soccer).

Belgium’s defense, though talented, is probably their biggest question mark. Belgium has more talent in this squad than they’ve ever had at a single time before, but for some reason, none of that talent plays fullback. Instead, they play four central defenders at the back, with Jan Vertonghen and Toby Alderweireld playing out wide. Their central defense is also a question mark at the moment, as Vincent Kompany isn’t fully fit. The U.S. definitely has a chance to exploit some of these uncertainties.

This Belgium team is very talented, but it’s hard to tell just how good they are, as none of their matches so far was very impressive. Were they not playing up to their potential because of the weak group they were in? Or are they just not as good as we thought? Their performances for far has given U.S. fans reasons to believe.

Belgium has had trouble breaking down sides that have sat deep and not given the quick Belgian attackers space to run in behind, so look for more of the same from the U.S. This U.S. team has never really pressed high up the field, and don’t expect them to start against Belgium. Belgium’s most impressive goal was Dries Mertens’ strike against Algeria, which came off a lightning-quick counterattack. The U.S. will try to limit the number of counter opportunities Belgium gets, as that is when they’re at their most dangerous. Players like Eden Hazard and Kevin de Bruyne thrive when they’re given space, so the U.S. will likely look to sit back and limit that.

Michael Bradley will need to play better for the USA to beat Belgium

The U.S. can definitely learn from Belgium’s group stage matches, as each of the sides Belgium faced did a reasonably good job at slowing down Belgium’s attack. What the U.S. does need to do is move the ball quickly and efficiently when they do get possession, and much of that responsibility is squarely on the shoulders of Michael Bradley. Although he recovered a bit from his terrible game against Ghana, he’s still been subpar, often giving away the ball very easily and in bad positions. If he can effectively distribute the ball, it will greatly increase the chances the U.S. has of winning.